Older Scots

Older Scots is a distinct historical stage in the development of the Scots language, encompassing its evolution between the 14th and 18th centuries. It is a subfield of study within the wider historical linguistics of Scots.^[1] This chronological term is widely used, for example by Scottish Language Dictionaries (formally SNDA),^[2] the Oxford Companion to the English Language,^[3] and the Cambridge History of English and American Literature.^[4] The online Dictionary of the Scots Language includes the Dictionary of the Older Scottish Tongue.^{[2][3]: 902}

Older Scots is used for the following periods in the history of the Scots language:

• Pre-literary Scots to 1375
• Early Scots to 1450
• Middle Scots to 1700